Cinder Fall to the Rescue?
by ThereIsNoWriterOnlyZuul
Summary: A cold night finds Cinder ready to assail one of Ironwood's compounds. How does this fit into her plan? Only time will tell.


The moon sat high over the city of Vale tonight. It had been months since the near dissolution of the alliance between Cinder and White Fang. Dissension among the ranks was all too common, and it had become not unlike a pox that was eating away at the very foundation of her operations within the city. But, as any good leader can attest, when you want the job done right, you simply do it yourself. While Mercury and Emerald maintained their cover at the school, she was free to slither like a snake hunting it's prey throughout the city.

Tonight, she stood poised over a warehouse, two armed guards stood at the entrance. Military 'on loan' from Atlas. Courtesy of our illustrious General Ironwood. They would pose little problem for the honed skills of Cinder. She brought her gaze to the side of the building, two sets of guards patrolled on intersecting paths. Ironwood certainly was the strategist. Even so, he had his dirty laundry. But that only worked in the schemer's favor. The enemy of my enemy and all that frippery was more than enough motivation to most. Besides that, the individual here would require a more... delicate touch.

Cinder waited, watching as one set of guards rounded the corner before leaping into action. Black mask of glass set in place, she stepped off the roof, the air rushing by her quickly. The dust laced through her leather catsuit ignited inaudibly, and only a barely perceptible shift in the hue of the charcoal outfit was enough to indicate anything had happened as she heated the air around herself. The hot air rose quickly around her, the sudden shift in temperature enough to keep slow her descent slightly. The sound of her heel reduced to a barely audible tap as she landed gave her all the time she needed. Dust ignited on her hand as she rushed forward. By the time the first of the patrolling pair had turned to the noise, it was already too late. The glass blade had slipped through his neck, and he crumpled to the ground in a heap as his colleague turned in horror. He had barely uttered a single syllable before Cinder had brought the blade up under him. The 'armor' the Atlesian military used left too many vulnerabilities. Specifically in the throat and chin. Thrusting the blade up from below, the glass point drive up through his chin and into his skull, a quick blast of heat killing him instantly and almost painlessly.

The entire exchange had taken place in the span of only a few second, but Cinder was still racing against the clock. The second patrol would be coming quickly, and she didn't have time to hide the bodies out here. Her timing had to be precise. She took off in a full sprint back to the corner of the building, as she approached, she could already hear the rhythmic steps of the soldiers nearing the turn. She swung her body low, flames igniting again and swirling around her as she spun. Embers snapped and cracked around her as the patrol turned the corner. "We have-" his words were cut off as an arrow lodged in his throat, and that of his partner. Flames ignited from the arrowhead and all he managed to choke out was a hoarse scream before they too, crumpled. Cinder dropped the bow immediately, the glass frame of it shattering into dust as it hit the ground. She didn't have long before they sent someone to investigate the missing patrol.

She took off at a sprint, now that the patrols had been handled, it was time to kick in the front door. Ironwood had gone to great lengths to make sure this warehouse couldn't be linked back to him, and Cinder knew that any response he made to her incursion would take time to maintain that secrecy. Without the warning the patrols would have incurred, she could afford to make grander displays in the interest of time. She made the corner and found herself face to face with the guards. No hesitation in her movements, she ran full bore down on them.

"Stop! We're authorized to engage!" Obligatory platitudes he espoused to soothe his own conscience. A few shots rang through the night, the bullets impacting on the barrier generated by her aura did little to slow her advance. She finished with a leap up off the ground, the concrete below her foot cracking as a small explosion pushed her further, fueled by dust again as she threw a powerful kick at her opponent. The force of the impact sent him spiraling to the ground. His gun skittered along the street and Cinder landed with grace on the ground. Her leg splayed to the side as she glanced up at the guard with a confident smirk, her ember colored eyes blazing like a fire. Her Semblance caused him to hesitate for just a moment too long. A fatal mistake as it turned out. Fire erupted from Cinder's gloved hands, twisting forward along the ground before erupting under his feet, consuming him in a powerful conflagration. The flames dispersed as quickly as they had ignited, leaving behind little more than the charred husk of a man.

Cinder stood up straight again, now with only one guard left, she turned him over. He swung at her with his fist, growling out in rage and frustration. The Black Queen reacted with lightning fast movements, stepping back just enough that the blow wouldn't connect while simultaneously stomping her heel and pinning his arm down over his own throat.

"Awww, have I upset you dear?" She said, a mockingly playful tone entering her voice as she looked down on him, literally underfoot. "Now, I know you're probably not in the best of moods after all of this, but would you be so kind as to give me the code for the door? I might even appreciate it enough to let you live.~" The soldier gritted his teeth, spitting down onto her boot. Cinder's eyes flared, pure malice in her gaze as she pushed down harder with her heel. "A loyal dog to the end, hmm? Time to put you down then." Cinder knelt down as she started to choke the life out of him. He clawed and punched feebly at her thigh with his free arm, trying desperately to free the arm pinned around his throat.

Reaching down with deft fingers, Cinder pulled the silver visor from his face, his short black hair, matted by the helmet, coming free. Cinder stared into his eyes as she watched the anger in his gaze slowly drain to fear as his attempts to free himself grew more and more desperate. His eyes widened in terror as he realized that there would be no rescue, and finally, his feeble hands fell away from her leg as his head lolled to the side, his feet giving a few final twitches as his life ebbed away. Cinder lifted her foot away only when she was sure he would never rise again.

She brushed a few stray strands of ashen hair from her face as she approached the doorway. Without the key code, she would need to break in. She had expected as much, but wouldn't find it to be much of an issue. She stepped up to the door, smiling as she delicately ran a finger over the steel. "How cute, but you'll need to better than this to keep me out James." She said to no one in particular as she unlatched a small tube from her belt. She pressed the nozzle to the door, creating a circle that was a couple of feet around. The gel squeezed from the tube had a faint orange glow to it, almost pulsing with potential energy as she capped the tube and set it back on her belt.

The Black Queen took a slow breath, closing her eyes as she prepared herself for the assault to come. Setting her hand in the center of the circle, she focused her energy into her arm. The dust throughout her outfit ignited, blazing brightly like burning charcoal. A set of glyphs projected out along her arm and she concentrated her aura through them. Flames traced down her arms, twisting and pulsing as it spread over the circle, engulfing the entire ring in fire. A loud whine filled the area as the air ignited the metal burning away before exploding into the warehouse. Cinder slipped through the hole immediately afterward.

The guards hadn't expected the door to turn to shrapnel, two had been caught full frontal in the blast. What was left of them wasn't pretty, shards of molten metal still cooling in their carcasses. Several others had been dazed by the sound and fury of the attack, and a few had scrambled to unstow their weapons. Cinder didn't give them the chance. She rushed in, grabbing one by the wrist and twisting his arm around with enough force to snap the bone loudly. His cry was immediately drowned out by the gunshot as she turned his gun on his comrade, firing off two shots, The first deflected harmlessly off the man's visor, but the second struck him in the throat, sending him down. Only two more guards remained, but Cinder's eyes widened as she caught a glint of light reflecting right in front of her face. She flipped back, narrowly avoiding the razor sharp blade as it sliced in front of her, deftly twisting her body and landing on her feet.

Looking up, she barely caught sight of a puff of blue smoke before she felt the presence next to her as suddenly as before. She moved on instinct, slipping low and letting a blast of fire trail up her arm before bringing it up, slinging it at her attacker. By the time she had moved though, all she caught again was another puff of smoke. She felt the blade catch her at the middle of her back, throwing her forward as her aura took the brunt of the attack for her, she turned, and this time, she saw her new opponent.

A Huntsman, he had deep blue hair, and crimson eyes creating a stark contrast. His thin blade set in his hand, he stared her down. His long coat seemed to glow a very faint blue, and Cinder could see the faint traces of water and ice dust weaved into the clothing. A contrast to herself, to be sure. But not an equal. Cinder stood straight, smiling at him confidently as always as she put a hand on her hip. "So, Ironwood roped you into keeping his dirty laundry safe? Shame. No offense, but I have business here."

Her opponent opted not to speak, instead disappearing again in a puff of smoke, appearing behind her with his blade already in motion on an upward strike. She raised her own hand, expecting the movement as her blade materialized, ashen glass melting into a solid form as she deflected the blow. No sooner had his blade clashed against hers that he was gone again.

She twisted her torso around, narrowly avoiding the edge, which barely nicked her catsuit as she brought her second hand down to form a second blade, bringing both around for a strike. By the time she had finished the motion though, he had vanished again. He appeared behind her again, but didn't strike. She moved to attack him instead, and found nothing but air. However, she did catch the telltale glow of dust igniting in his outfit.

So when he teleported again, this time she was ready. Her own dust activated, sending red flames out around her. The flames met the blast of water that he launched at her, sending them both flying back as it instantly evaporated from the searing heat of her fire. He seemed surprised, a mistake that would cost him as Cinder had already shattered one of her blades, sending the shards flying through the air with a quick burst of energy. The glass, fine as it was, was still as sharp as a blade. Several pieces lodged inside him, while others tore at his clothes and skin as they passed.

He teleported again, but this time the huntress was prepared. Already, she had flipped her sword behind her, and as he rematerialized around the blade, he realized the mistake. Having pierced himself with his own teleportation, he fell back to the ground, eyes lifeless as the blade stuck from his chest like a trophy.

Cinder stood up straight, flipping her hair back over her shoulder, then looking down at him. "It's a shame, you had some promise." She turned away from him, heading back into the room now. The guards had fled during her scuffle with the huntsman. No doubt to call for reinforcements. Again, the seclusion and secrecy of the facility would buy her the time she needed to finish the job. She stepped back to the guard station, looking over the valuables stored away. Finding the locker she needed wasn't too hard, a quick jet of flame easily severing the metal lock from the container as she opened it to reveal a brilliant blue longsword. She pulled at the handle, grunting with effort before letting it sit in the case. "Hmm, well, we can always stop for it on our way out." She closed the lid with a sly smile, turning and picking up a prisoner roster.

Ironwood used the facility as a secret prison. Several lowlifes and degenerates he didn't want to get a fair trial, or had no other way to contain, he put in here. Cinder could admire the ruthlessness of leaving people to rot in a hole like this. Of course, she would simply have killed them and been done with it. But then, that's what separated the two of them. One still held the illusion that they were the "good guy".

Cinder found the name she was looking for, smiling as she set the scroll the list displayed on in her belt as she sauntered past the cell. Some of the cells showed people inside, one way glass allowing easy monitoring of the prisoners. Others were steel reinforced doors. Cinder smiled idly as she though of just how much Ironwood probably wanted to lock her in a box exactly like these. Finally, she stopped at a door simply marked (M).

Cinder ran a hand over the door, the steel reinforcement plain as day. She pulled the gel from it's pouch again, applying a liberal application on the door. She extended her hand out, closing her eyes as she focused her Aura on the gel. The material ignited, the metal groaning as it's otherwise solid structure gave way, dissolving the door down and allowing light to filter into the darkened room before.

"Knock knock~." Cinder said with a smirk as she set a hand on her hip, watching the darkness. A low growl came from the room, and the next movement happened so quickly she could hardly react. There was simultaneously a roar, and a hand at her throat. The man inside had grabbed her and shoved her back against the wall. He looked up at her, his black eyes meeting her amber ones as he snarled, the red paint on his face reminiscent of blood. "What is this?! Why have you come?"

Cinder winced a little, but didn't fight him. Best to seem more in control for now, dominance would be key to maintaining his loyalty. "This is freedom. A chance to escape and get back at the man who put you here." The bear faunus snarled as he squeezed tighter, glaring up at her. "My enemy is the General. You will also help me kill him?!" Cinder gave a nod, "I came all this way, just for that. We can help each other, Mogar."


End file.
